Combined typewriting and computing machine



Jan. 21, 1930. R sc 1,744,502

COMBINED TYPEWRITING AND COMPUTING MACHINE Filed Sept. 11. 1925ZSheets-Shee 1 //7 vemor I Jan.-2l, 1930. v H. RESCH 1,744,502

COMBINED TYPEWRiTING AND COMPUTING MACHINE Filed Sept. 11. 1925 2Sheets-Sheet 2 /7 X; REAR ELEVATION //7 V/7 far W & f 1

Affarn Patented Jan. 21, 1930 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE HENRY BESCH,OF BAYONNE, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOB, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TOELLIOTT-FISHER COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF DELAWARE COMBINED TYPEWRITINGAND COMPUTING. MACHINE Application filed September This inventionrelates -to key-actuated means for controlling the computing zones incombined typewriting and computing machines.

In machines of the Underwood-Hanson type, the carriage, in movingthrough computing zones, operates a plurality of'sets of jacks tooperate a plurality of sets of rods, each rod being operativelyconnected to corresponding register-operating pin-bars.

One of the features of this invention relates to means whereby themachine may be easily transformed from ledger-posting to billing or viceversa, with little or no effort on the part of the operator, such as thedepressin of a key conveniently placed near the key oard of the machine.According to this invention, the connecting rods at the rear-of themachine are arranged in sets, each set being guided by an individualframe, all the frames, however, being pivotally mounted upon a universalshaft operatively connected to a key effective to rock the shaft. Sinceeach set of denominational jacks corresponds to a separate register inthe computing machine, and the registers are rendered either operativeor inoperative, depending on the columnar arrangement of each form, itis obvious that flexibility must be provided. To this end, means areprovided whereby any number of registers may be normally effective forone class of work, say, continuous billing, and by the simple depressionof a key any number of registers, either the same ones, or otherregisters, may be rendered effective to correspond with the columnarspacing of the ledger forms.

In order to accomplish the object of this invention, novel means areprovided which may comprise a universal sha-ft operatively connected toa depressible key to rock the shaft in one direction when the key isdepressed and to restore the shaft to its normal position when the keyis released. Upon the universal shaft there are mounted a plurality ofbail pieces, each serving as a guide for the upper end of theregister-connecting rods. The bail pieces 'may be selectively securedtothe shaft by means of finger-screws, thereby swinging certain rods intoengagement with 11, 1925. Serial No. 55,719.

the denominational selector jacks when the shaft is rocked by depressingthe key. In

order to reverse the action, of the shaft upon a normally operative bailpiece, when required, some bail pieces may be provided with a compoundleverage, or motion-reversing links, operative to convey motion to thebail opposite to the motion of the shaft. It will be obvious that byloosening any finger screw the bail will not be shifted when the shaftis rocked by the key.

From the foregoing description, it will be gathered that certain bailsmay be selectively set upon the shaft to correspond to a normalarrangement of columnar spaces and other bails selectively set upon theshaft for substitute columnar spaces that are inoperative until thedepression of the key effects a regerlsal of the positions of the twoselections of It will be understood that this invention is a furtherdevelopment of improvements described in the patents to Harry H.Vickers, No. 1,278,062 of Sept. 3, 1918, and No. 1,400,- 842 of Dec. 20,1921, in which an effort was made to selectively control theeffectiveness of the connecting rods to operate the pin bars.

Other features and advantages will hereinafter appear.

In the accompanying drawings,

Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view, in elevation, showing the inventionas applied to an Underwood combined typewriting and computing machine ofthe continuous billing t pe.

Figure 2 is a side view, in elevation, of the invention showing the keyin its depressed position. v

Figure 3 is a rear view in perspective showing the denominational jackunits and co-opcrating denominational connecting rods to the computingmechanism.

Figure 4 is a detail view showin the motion-reversin g link, the bailsand their mountings upon the rock-shaft.

Figure 5 is a rear view, in elevation, showin. a related series ofdenominational jack units.

Referring more particularly to Figure 1 in which the invention isillustrated as applied Val to a combined typewriting and computingmachine of the type having a continuous billing attachment, it will benoted that there is provided a key 10 near the keyboard of the machinefor the purpose of transforming the machine for ledger-posting. Such amachine being fully illustrated in the pending application of William F.Helmond, No. 609,560, filed Dec. 29, 1922, (now Patent No. 1,572,139,dated February 9, 1926) it need not be described herein.

Upon depressing the key 10 against the tension of a spring 11 akey-lever 12 is pushed rearwardly and owing to the downward pressure ofthe spring the key-lever is locked by; a notch 13 engaging with a frontplate 14. The rearmost end of the key-lever 12 is operatively connectedto an arm 15 by means of a stud 16 fast to the arm 15 which is in turnsecured to a universal shaft 17 by means of a pin 18 through a hub 19forming an integral part of the arm 15. It will be noted that thekey-lever 12 is held in its normal position by a pin 20 fast thereto andengaging with the plate 14, under the pressure of the spring 11. For thepurpose of illustrating the invention, there are three denominationaljack units, respectively numbered 21, 22 and 23, the three beingsimultaneously controlled by the shaft 17. Although only the unit 22 isprovided with reversing mechanism, it is obvious that all units could beso equipped as shown in Fi ure 4, thereby rendering the machine moreexible and adaptable to different classes of work. According to thisarrangement the units 21 and 23 are controlled by means of bail-pieces24 which'are secured to the shaft and move therewith. The bailpieces 24are provided with a seriesof holes 25, each hole receiving a rod 26connected at the lower end to a register pin-bar connection 40, and eachrod being held in co-operating position with a correspondingdenominational jack 27 operated by a tappet 41 carried by a dog 42 onthe carriage. Since the bailpleces 24 are secured to the shaft 17 bymeans of pins 28 when the shaft is swung by pushing the key 10rearwardly the bail-pieces 24 will be swung with the shaft forwardly toa position as shown in the unit 22 of Fi ure 3.

In order to reverse the operation of the bail-pieces 24 when the shaftis swung, that is to say, to render efiective the unit 22 while theother two units are rendered ineffective, there is provided mechanismincluding an arm 29 settably mounted on the shaft 17 and adjacent thebail-piece 24 and a reversing sub-lever 30 rockabl mounted upon a stud31 fast to one of the s aft supporting brackets 32. Said lever 30 isoperatively connected to the arm 29 by means or a pin and slotarrangement 33, the upper end of the lever 30 being provided with a slot34 engaging with a pin 35 fast to the bail-piece 24. Since the arm 29 issecured to the shaft 17 by means of a finger-screw 36 and the bail-piece24 is freely mounted on said shaft when the shaft is rotated to swingthe other two bail-pieces to their ineffective position, the bail-piece24. will be thrown to its efiective position, as shown in Figure 3.

According to the method of handling the work in the machine, a seriesof'bill-forms having interleaved carbon sheets is led from a supply atthe rear of the machine, over a frame 37 and down, under and around aplaten 38 and up in front thereof, the leading edge of the assembledwork-sheet being fed up by successive line-spacing, to a gage 39 to begaged in form length.

lVhen it is desired to change the class of work, then the assembledwork-sheet is withdrawn and is folded upon the frame 37 and the key 10is depressed and locked in the position shown in Figure 2. Then thestatementshcet is reinserted around the platen to be typed upon.

Variations may be resorted to within the scope of the invention, andportions of the improvements may be used Without others.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. The combination with a combined typewriting and computing machinehaving a traveling typewriter carriage, carriage-actuated denominationselecting means including a pluralit of sets of jacks and a plurality ofsets of IOC s operable thereby, and a plurality of guiding frames forthe upper ends of said rods, of means for selectively rendering eitheroperative or inoperative, either one of a pair of sets of rods, in amanner to alternately render operative one set of rods while renderinginoperative the other set of rods, said means-including a rock-shaftupon which the guiding frames are operatively secured,

certain of the frames being fast to the shaft,

and other frames being pivotally mounted on the shaft and controlled bymotion-reversing means operative to swing these frames in a directionreverse to the rotation of the rockshaft. a

2. The combination with a combined type- Writing and computingmechanism, the typewriting mechanism having a traveling carriage, andthe'computing mechanism'having a plurality of groups of register'pin-barconnections and operated by carriage-controlled sets of jacks normallyinoperative to the connecting rods to the register-connections, of meansincluding a single key at the front of the machine operatively connectedto selectively render any number ofsets of rods effective to the jacks,said means includin a shaft rocked b the key and having mec anismsettable t ereon to predetermine the set er sets'of rods to be operativeto compute.

3. The combination with a combined typewritlng and computing mechanism,the typewriting mechanism having a traveling carinto or out ofco-operation with the denominational jacks, thereby rendering eitheroperatlve or lnoperatlve the register-connections to the computingmechanism, said means including a shaft upon which there are adjustablymounted a plurality of bailpieces, each bailiece provided with a seriesof holes for receiving the upper ends of one set of the rods, and meansfor selectively securing the bail-pieces to the shaft so as topredetermine the group of register-connections to be effective tocompute.

' 4. The combination with a combined typewriting and computingmechanism, the typewriter having a traveling carriage, and the computingmechanism having a plurality of groups of register pin-bar connectionsand a set of carriage-actuated jacks and connecting rods for each groupof connections, of means controlled by'a key and operated to throw oneor more sets of rods out of engagement withtheir denominational jacks,and to simultaneously throw other sets of rods into engagement with thedenominational jacks to actuate their computing connections, saidkey-controlled means including a universal shaft operatively connectedto be rocked by the key and carrying means operative to individuallyrock each set of rods into co-operation with their jacks.

5. The combination with a combined typewriting and computing mechanism,the typewriter having a traveling carriage, and the computing mechanismhaving a plurality of groups of register pin-bar connections and a setof carriage-actuated jacks and connecting rods for each group ofconnections, of means selectively controlled by a key and operative tothrow the adjacent setof rods out of engagement with theirdenominational jacks or to throw adjacent sets of other rods intoengagement with their denominational jacks to operate theircomputingconnections, said key-controlled means including a universal shaftoperatively connected to be rocked by the key and carrying means forindividually rocklng and guiding the upper ends of said connecting rods,said last-mentioned means including a plurality of bailpieces, eachhaving a series of holes therein for receiving the ends of the rods, andalso means whereby the bail-pieces may be selectively secured to orreleased from the shaft, 6. The combination with a combined typewritingand computing mechanism, the typewriter having a traveling carriage, andthe computing mechanism having a plurality of groups of register pin-barconnections and a set of'carriage-actuated jacks and connecting rods foreach group of connections, of means selectively controlled by a keyoperative to throw certain sets of rods out of engagement with theirsets of denominational ]3.CkS and to throw other sets of rods intoengagementv with their denominational jacks, said keycontrolled meansincluding a universal shaft operatively connected to said key to berocked thereby and means carried by said shaft for supporting andguiding the upper ends of each set of connecting rods, saidlast-mentioned means including a plurality of bailpieces, each bailhaving a series of holes therein for receiving the ends of one set ofrods, and means whereby the bail-pieces may be selectively coupled tothe shaft, said lastmentioned means also including an arm adjustablysecured to the shaft and having a pin engaging with a slot in asub-lever pivoted on the frame, the upper end of the sublever beingoperatively connected to its bailpiece by means of a pin and slotarrangement.

HENRY RESCH.

